


(i will be the fire) that keeps you warm

by Bre



Series: The Artie Chronicles [1]
Category: Arrow (TV 2012)
Genre: (sort of), Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Roommates/Housemates, Comfort, Dogs, F/M, Felicity Smoak Has PTSD, Felicity Smoak Has Panic Attacks, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Hurt/Comfort, Landlord Oliver Queen, Olicity Summer Sizzle, Olicity Summer Sizzle 2019, Oliver Queen Has Nightmares, Oliver Queen Has PTSD, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Roommates, Service Dogs, Sharing a Bed, Tenant Felicity Smoak, because i can't do a T rating and not push the boundaries SLIGHTLY, it reaches first base level if that, things get a little hot and heavy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-28
Updated: 2019-08-01
Packaged: 2020-07-23 21:30:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 18,441
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20015089
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Bre/pseuds/Bre
Summary: AU. Felicity and her puppy Artemis are the newest tenants at Queen Manor. It’s going well, save for the fact that her landlord is a stand-offish brute who doesn’t know how to talk outside of a growl. It probably doesn’t help that Artie really likes him, or that she insists on showing that love by sneaking into his room every night.Written for #OlicitySummerSizzle





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Based on [this old tweet](https://twitter.com/dust2dust34/status/905456008658604033) of mine.
> 
> The title is from Slow Dancer by Noah Gundersen. Let me tell you, I listened to this song as well as Someone To Stay by Vancouver Sleep Clinic and Wilderness by Jon Bryant for this fic. They all fit somehow, in some way. I love them all. I wanted to do a title with () because that's what this fic is about.
> 
> Thank you to the effervescent M for looking this over!

_Bang, bang, bang!_

“Wha…?” 

Felicity Smoak popped up in bed. She struggled to open her eyes, but her lids were glued together. She managed to pry them open enough to see only the barest hint of sunlight filling the room. _Too early. Way too early. What is happening?_

 _Banging_ , that’s what was happening. 

She leveled a hard glare at the door marking the entrance to her suite-slash-apartment-slash-room of rooms where it rattled on its hinges. Someone was knocking. Or trying to bust a hole through the heavy wood. Or trying to _die_ because it was too _early_ -

_Bang, bang, bang!_

“Felicity!”

The familiar voice sliced through her sleep fog. 

Felicity threw back her comforter with a harried, “Oh frak, frak, frak,” and scrambled off the bed. Her foot got caught in the sheet and she nearly fell over, barely catching herself with a couple hops. Glasses, she needed glasses, she couldn’t see-

_Bang, bang, bang!_

“I’m coming!” she shouted in reply, finding her glasses on her laptop. She shoved them on and launched herself out of the bedroom and to the main door, realizing with a soft curse that there wasn’t a furry body winding through her feet, or the pitter-patter of paws on the hardwood floor.

Dread filled her chest. 

_Please don’t be what I think it is, please…_

Felicity opened her door.

A very angry wall greeted her. Well, if a wall could be angry. Her landlord’s face was blank, his eyes empty pools of blue staring right through her. When she met his gaze, his eyebrow ticked up. That was it. The only indication anything else was going on was the wall’s arms currently held a soft blue-grey bundle of pit bull puppy.

Her pit bull puppy.

Felicity grimaced.

Oliver Queen didn’t so much as blink as he handed the dog over with one hand.

She absolutely did not notice the way his bicep bulged against his white - _very tight_ \- t-shirt. She also did not notice that his hand was big enough to hold her pupper’s little wiggling butt without dropping her, or that his shoulders somehow got wider every time she saw him, or that his sweatpants fell really low on his hips. She didn’t notice any of that. Nope. What she did notice was the familiar tic of his other hand, his index finger and thumb rubbing together. It was the only sign anything was happening in that concrete head of his.

Well, unless someone knew what to look for, which she did. 

Call it self-preservation, or an innate curiosity, or maybe even her own version of PTSD. Whatever it was, it had her spending a little bit of time - ha, “a little bit” - studying him, all to avoid any pitfalls in his presence.

She usually failed. Like right now. Still, she could tell he was aiming for a vast array of nothingness, but tension lined his face. He looked like he was one wrong move from shattering into a thousand pieces.

Dealing with an overeager pit bull puppy probably wasn’t helping.

“I’m so sorry, Oliver,” she said, taking the puppy.

“Keep her out of my room,” Oliver said. No, he _growled_. There wasn’t a snarl on his lips, but the words ripped out of him like his throat was a garbage disposal full of rocks. It had taken Felicity a couple of days - alright, weeks - to get used to it. At least she didn’t flinch anymore.

“I honestly have no idea how she’s getting over there,” Felicity said with an apologetic smile. “She’s been really good with her training - especially her potty training, which is a really good thing, and should absolutely be noted here. And she usually stays with me. Except when it comes to you. I guess she just really likes you.”

His face soured. “Well, I don’t like her.”

Felicity frowned. Hearing a dog liked you was a compliment, right? He obviously didn’t dislike dogs, or he wouldn’t have let her bring Artie into his home when she moved in a few weeks ago. And he obviously was comfortable with the puppy, enough to hold her with ease and toss her around with his huge hands. And that Artie let him do that in the first place, trusting him to keep her safe? Most people took that as a compliment. 

So clearly it wasn’t _dogs_ Oliver didn’t like.

Felicity nearly bit through her tongue.

At least now she knew what it felt like to have her heart sucked through a straw.

“Right,” Felicity said. She tried another smile, but it made her face crinkle like plastic. “Sorry. I’ll keep a better eye on her.”

Oliver’s jaw tightened and then his eyes narrowed. God, what now? As if he heard her unspoken question, a muscle in his cheek jumped as he stared her down. It took everything in Felicity to keep still. This always happened. It was like he finally opened his eyes and was seeing her for the first time, and he didn’t like what he saw. At all. He probably regretted letting her into his home. A bitter pill to swallow, since the security of this place was unlike anywhere else - partly thanks to her - but also because he let her keep her pit bull. Liking her was too much, which, okay, that was fine. She should be okay with that. And she was. Okay, she _tried_ to be. His gaze lingered long enough that Felicity almost blurted, _“Just tell me you don’t like me and put us both out of our misery,”_ but then he seemed to catch himself. 

Nostrils flaring on an agitated sigh, he turned without another word and stalked away.

Felicity leaned out to watch him eat up the distance between her door and the end of the hallway with long, hurred strides. 

One thing she had quickly learned when she first moved into the Queen Manor was that the place was obnoxiously huge. The outside did not do the inside justice. It had wings, and suites - a bunch of rooms Oliver called apartments even though they weren’t really _apartments_ \- and multiple kitchens and who really needed a separate ballroom these days? Nobody, that’s who. Which was probably why that room had been converted to a gym. Still, the house - sorry, the _manor_ \- was something you usually only read about in eighteenth century novels. 

Or Billionaires Weekly where one learned that the long-lost Queen heir had converted his family home into a glorified apartment complex with top-of-the-line security that Felicity herself could not hack.

Probably because she’d designed it, but semantics. And probably the only reason he hadn’t tossed her to the curb yet.

When he disappeared around a corner, she let out a heavy, “Okay then,” and closed her door.

A wagging dog tail whacked Felicity’s ribs. 

“Artemis, what am I going to do with you?” The tail simply went faster. Biting back a smile, Felicity cocked a hip and gave the puppy her best stern look. “You’re going to get me kicked out of here, you do realize that, don’t you?”

A chipper little bark was her reply and it did exactly what she knew it would do: melted Felicity.

“You’re lucky you’re so darn cute,” Felicity told her, tapping her little nose a few times. Artie simply grinned up at her before lurching up to lick at Felicity’s lips. She scrunched up her nose on a chuckle and then another sigh. “How he can resist you is beyond me. But he does. Which means you need to behave, young lady. Or at least tell me how the hell you’re managing to get to his room in the first place. You gonna fess up? Hit me with those puppy trade secrets?”

Artie just blinked up at her with a cocked head.

“Fine,” Felicity relented. She kissed her soft little head, giggling when Artemis nuzzled her back. “How about you remember that I like you and I do want you around, so maybe actually stay here where you have a perfectly good little bed right there. Sound good?”

Artie barked in agreement.

It seemed to work. 

For a couple weeks, at least.

During that time, Felicity finally got around to unpacking the rest of her boxes. It unfortunately required a rearranging of epic proportions as she had started to use said boxes as actual furniture. So she had to break it all down and start over. But she did it and that was the important part. And Artemis stayed the hell out of Oliver’s room. Really, stayed out of his way in general. Felicity got ridiculously good at avoiding him. She only surfaced when she knew he was down in the gym - same time, every single day, for a minimum of three hours - or in his room.

So he didn’t like her. So what? Big deal. That didn’t hurt, not at all. They just didn’t click and sometimes people don’t click. There were plenty of other people to click with in the world. She just happened to be renting space from an unclickable one. 

At least his other tenants were nice. Iris and Barry were actual walking gems, and Curtis and his husband had an entire wing to themselves that Felicity had started to frequent more often than not. There was a new guy moving in at the end of the week - John Diggle - who had been around earlier to check out the house and they already had a good rapport. 

See? Clickable people all around. 

“So what if we don’t click? We don’t have to click,” Felicity mumbled to her laundry basket.

She entered her apartment and kicked the door shut behind her. The familiar jangle of tags told her Artie was right on her heels and Felicity forced herself to turn her attention to happier topics.

“We’re doing good, aren’t we?” Felicity asked the dog. “Got all the boxes out of here, like the strong, independent women we are. Yes, that’s what we are. Most independent women do laundry at this hour, right? Not because it drowns out the sound of the stupid storm, but because it’s a thing people do. Yes, let’s go with that. Oh, but hey, we can finally enter the closet again! Which means I can put my laundry away. No more clothes everywhere. We are responsible adults. We are clean people who adult in the clean ways that adults are supposed to. Which reminds me…” She dropped the basket on the floor and entered the closet to grab some hangers. “You are not allowed to go into adulthood, baby girl. Oh my god, I sound like my mother. Whatever, the point is that you are growing like a weed, and do you have any idea how much food that takes?”

Felicity came back out, fully expecting to see an eager little puppy face.

Except she wasn’t there.

“Artie?” Felicity called. 

She waited to hear the slap of her giant paws on the floor and her tags as she ran back.

Nothing.

“Uh oh,” she whispered, apprehension slithering down her spine. She dropped the hangers in her laundry basket and went searching for her. “Artemis?”

Nada.

On a whim, Felicity yanked her suite door open and peered down the hallway.

“There’s no way you could have opened this door since you don’t have opposable thumbs,” Felicity whisper-shouted. “But you also can’t just disappear. Artie!”

Despite her best efforts, her voice echoed down the empty stretch. She winced, but nobody responded. Thankfully. It was almost two in the morning and while she didn’t have normal hours, most of her roommates absolutely did.

She turned back to her room. “Where’d you go?” A faint jangle sounded. “Oh thank god.”

Felicity followed the sound. To her bedroom. To her closet.

To a _hole_ in the frakking wall.

Felicity stumbled to a stop, her jaw dropping. It wasn’t a hole so much as what looked like a small, old entrance that had been boarded over with paneling a long time ago. But whoever had done it clearly hadn’t planned for a tenacious little puppy who had a tendency to disappear and reappear in… 

It clicked.

“Oh my god! Artemis!” Felicity hissed, falling to her knees and pulling the paneling back. There was another wall there - no, more of a door, she realized, because it had hinges, very old, dilapidated hinges that had rusted through so the door fell open. The jangle of tags told her that this was exactly where Artemis had gone. “Get your little butt back here!”

Her tags grew fainter.

“You little…”

Felicity pushed the door open, finding a space just big enough for her to squeeze through and squeeze she did. She managed a few feet before the back pocket of her pajama bottoms caught on an old nail. When she tugged, cursing her love of mint chip ice cream, the material tore. Felicity gasped, reaching back to try and free it, but the space was too tight. She had to move forward or backward. Either way her pants wouldn’t survive.

“You owe me a new pair of pants, young lady!” she whispered as loud as she dared. 

She had no idea where this went, or how Artie had even found this hidden place. Her stomach dipped thinking about where it could lead.

_Please don’t be where I think it goes, please, please, please. I’ll be good, no more hacking and I’ll actually learn how to cook for all the people who leave all that delicious food in the kitchen. I’ll be good. I’ll be better. I will._

So this was why Artie had been so good the last few weeks, wasn’t it? Because Felicity had had this “door” blocked by boxes. 

“Little bugger,” Felicity grumbled, forging forward. “Artie, get back here.”

A jangle, and then a rusty squeak, like another door opening.

“Oh frak.” 

Felicity moved faster, hoping she was quick enough to catch her jerk puppy, and praying that this dusty little corridor didn’t take them where she feared it did. At least it wasn’t very long, the light from her closet illuminating the long space enough for her to see. That was good, because she really didn’t need her mind pulling up every single horror movie she’d ever watched.

She caught a glimmer of light at the end of the tunnel.

By the time she reached it, though, she was too late.

Felicity shoved the door open as quickly and quietly as she could, just in time to see a little grey butt wiggle around the corner of a large bed. 

_Please don’t be who I think it is. Please._

A distorted moan answered her. 

Ice showered her veins as her ribs contracted violently, suddenly becoming way too small for her body.

She knew enough cadences of that voice to recognize it.

Oliver’s room.

“No, no, no,” Felicity breathed, shoving the rest of the way through and landing in a heap on the floor of Oliver’s closet. She didn’t take time to appreciate just how absolutely insane all of this was before she was scrambling to her feet and tip-toeing to the bed. She was going to grab Artie, quick as she could, and then she was going to run. Because if Oliver woke up and found her there with her dog? She wouldn’t just get kicked out, she’d be arrested. For trespassing or assault with cute puppy or stalking, probably, because _this was insane_. 

A ragged gasp sounded and she made a face, doing her best to be quiet as she darted forward.

Her eyes darted to the bed, to make sure he was asleep - not to check that he was alone, because that was so not her place - but the bed was empty. Not just empty, but it was perfectly made. Showroom-ready.

Felicity frowned and then another sound came, a little cry, followed by a broken, “No.”

Her frown deepening, she moved to the other side of the bed where Artie had disappeared.

A thin tangle of blankets barely covered a thrashing Oliver Queen. 

Felicity froze and a thousand thoughts bombarded her. Was he having a nightmare? Was it from his time on the island, the time nobody knew the specifics about except for him? Did this happen every night? Was he okay? Did he always sleep like this, no pillow, the hard floor digging into him, offering no softness to his limbs where he threw them in violent fits? She jumped at a particularly hard one, wincing. He was a big man, but right now he looked smaller than her. She didn’t like it. Her heart cracked down the center, and the instinct to go to him was almost too strong to deny. But she knew enough about PTSD to know that was a very bad idea. Especially considering he didn’t even know she was in here.

_Artemis!_

On cue, the puppy appeared on the other side of Oliver’s head. 

“Artie,” Felicity breathed, but the dog only had eyes for Oliver. 

_Oh god, she’s going to get hurt._

The thought of hearing her yelp tore through Felicity, and that had nothing on what would happen if Oliver woke up. There wasn’t a clear path to get to the dog, though. She had lodged herself between Oliver and the bed. Heart in her throat, Felicity watched her, whispering her name, urging her to come back to her as Oliver’s nightmare kept its hold on him. His shoulder jerked, knocking Artemis onto her back. Felicity flinched, almost launching herself over him to grab her, but Artie was already back up and scuttling over his shoulder and landing in front of him. He whimpered, his body jerking on a painful spasm, his face twisting.

Helplessness flooded Felicity. She didn’t know what to do.

But Artemis did.

The puppy shoved herself into Oliver’s neck, burrowing into the small space between his head and the floor. A shuddery breath left him and Felicity went very still, waiting for something horrible to happen, but all Artie did was shift again. She nuzzled her way up his stubbled jaw and then draped herself across his neck, pillowing her head on his cheek.

And then the most amazing thing happened.

Oliver calmed.

It happened in slow, jerky increments, but the tension slowly slid out of him, his breathing evening out, his brow smoothing. 

He finally fell still and when he did, Artie let out a little sigh herself and closed her eyes.

All Felicity could do was stand there, watching Oliver and Artemis fall asleep together, until a voice in the back of her head told her it was creepy to stare. But she didn’t leave right away. Her chest ached at the sight they made together.

There was no way in hell she was going to get the dog away from him, was there?

And she didn’t want to, Felicity realized. Oliver looked peaceful, for the first time in… In _weeks_. The last several days, he looked like he’d been run into the ground. But before that, when Artemis kept disappearing, he might have still looked like he had a stick up his ass, but at least it was a rested ass. Now he was… soft. At ease. He was a gorgeous man to begin with, but right now, with all lines of his face relaxed, his mouth parted on deep, even breaths, he looked so young. And unbelievably handsome. A yearning for him to look like that when his eyes were open filled her, but she squashed it a second later. Just because her dog was able to calm his nightmares didn’t mean Oliver would ever look at Felicity with that softness.

Still, the yearning didn’t go away. He might not like her, but Felicity still wanted him to be happy. Or at the very least settled. 

Like he was now.

Felicity slowly backed out. She went through the same little corridor, making sure to shut his side as securely as she could, knowing Oliver would just bring Artemis to her in the morning when he woke up.

Thoughts of Oliver plagued her through the night and she barely got any sleep when a hard knocking attacked her door.

But she was ready for it this time. If he noticed anything was off, he didn’t comment, just throwing Artemis at Felicity on a growl and stalking away. 

As she watched him walk away, a plan formed in her mind. She had gotten Artie for peace of mind after what had happened last fall, but the security at Queen Manor had put her more at ease than anything else could. She didn’t need Artemis to sleep, unlike some gruff, very unaware people. And who was she to stop Artie from giving that security away so graciously? It was stupid, and she knew it, but she couldn’t escape the peaceful look she’d seen on Oliver’s face the night before..

And so, when night fell and before she had a chance to chicken out, Felicity picked Artemis up and went straight to his room.

It was a great plan, she told herself.

Up until she knocked on his door and then her nerves nearly undid her right then and there.

When the door swung open, Felicity blurted, “I keep my closet open.”

Oliver raised an eyebrow.

“I…” A nervous laugh. “I found out how Artie’s been getting to your room. There’s a secret door in our closets. Did you know that? You probably did, since this is your house, and you should know that. If you didn’t, it’s good that you do know. It’s also interesting that it’s not freaking me out, because it should, since someone tried to… You know what, that’s not important. What is important is that I think you should take Artemis tonight.”

“What?”

“Yes,” Felicity confirmed, handing the excited puppy over. Oliver didn’t take her and Felicity wiggled Artemis, much to the pit bull’s delight. “Here. She likes you. A lot. And she’s already gone potty and she’s all ready for bed, and I think you should sleep with her, because she… I think she helps you.”

Confusion wrinkled his brow before understanding dawned. 

There was a split second where she thought she saw a flash of vulnerability that cut so deep she could almost see the blood, but then it was gone as his face shut her out as hard as a door slamming in her nose. 

She didn’t let it sway her.

“Just try it? Please?” Felicity pressed. “One night. And if you really-”

“No,” he interrupted in a hard voice.

“Don’t like it, then I’ll find a way to barricade my closet so she can’t ever come over again.”

“Felicity-”

He bit out her name through a mouthful of bitterness. Hurt cut her to the quick and she bit her tongue before putting on her serious face. Her stern voice came out next. “Oliver. You need to sleep. You don’t sleep. Anyone with eyes can see that. Artemis helps you. Try it for one night and if you really hate her as much as you seem to hate me in the morning, then I’ll make sure you never have to see us ever again, living in the same house or not. Okay?”

Oliver worked his jaw, his nostrils flaring with that telltale agitation as he glared at her. 

But he didn’t say no.

It was really a testament to him as a human being that this gruff asshole facade of his wasn’t sending her running in the opposite direction. She shouldn’t be pushing her dog on someone like him, someone who was so closed off he reminded her of a wall. A very angry brick wall. And yet here she was, talking to him. Pushing him. Challenging him.

She didn’t know what it was about him, but she trusted him. With her safety, in his house, with her dog, and with herself, she realized, as she practically threw herself out on a limb.

The seconds ticked by, turning into a minute, and then another, neither of them moving. 

Artemis wiggled to get to him, but Felicity didn’t let her go, her gaze never wavering.

“Fine,” Oliver finally gritted out.

A delighted smile tugged at Felicity’s face and his eye twitched at the sight. 

_Well, too bad, buddy, you need this and I’m going to give you peace of mind whether you like or not._

Trepidation followed that thought, along with a wash of anxious tingles that set her heart off, but she didn’t let it bring her down. It had been a while since she felt the urge to reach out to someone like this, and it was good that she was. It had to be. It was better than hiding.

“Good,” Felicity said before turning her dog. “Be good for Mr. Queen, young lady.” She kissed Artemis on the nose before handing her over. Oliver took her. Reluctantly, but he still took her. Felicity definitely didn’t notice his bulging bicep again - _that damn t-shirt was so tight again, and those sweatpants of his went low, low, low_ \- or the way he held Artemis so naturally. A strange tug pulled in her stomach. She ignored it. “Okay then. Well. Goodnight.”

She turned.

“Felicity-” 

His voice was softer than she’d ever heard it. She found herself wanting to hear more of it, but not if he was going to return Artemis.

“One night,” she interrupted, looking back at him. “Trust me.”

He wasn’t expecting that, and he looked taken aback.

Felicity offered him another smile before nodding and then she walked back to her room. When she gave into the urge to glance back, it was to find Oliver and Artemis watching her walk away - Artie with a grin, and Oliver with a peculiar look that had a horde of butterflies swamping Felicity’s stomach.

_What in the world am I doing?_

The night passed like molasses, and it wasn’t until around three in the morning that Felicity finally fell asleep.

_Knock, knock, knock._

The soft rap woke her more readily than the banging ever did. 

Bleary-eyed and stumbling - _mornings are so evil, so painfully evil_ \- she found her glasses and opened the door to a sheepish Oliver Queen and a happy pit bull puppy.

“Hi,” he greeted softly. 

Why did that simple word send a shiver down her spine?

“Hi,” Felicity replied, sweeping a hand through her bedridden hair. She couldn’t hide her grin as she looked at Artie before her eyes found him again. “So how’d it go?”

“Fine,” Oliver said, handing Artie over. 

Felicity took her with flourish as she asked, “Did it go fine, baby girl?”

Oliver stepped back to turn away, but then he stopped. Felicity cradled Artemis in her arms and looked up at him. 

“It did help,” he admitted. 

“Yeah?”

One corner of his mouth ticked up in a sad smile as he nodded at her. “Thank you.”

Felicity blinked in astonishment, her jaw threatening to fall, but she stopped it, giving him a smile in return. “Of course. I’m glad. She’s got a presence about her, doesn’t she?”

Oliver’s eyes never left Felicity as he whispered, “Yeah. She does.”

A flutter attacked her heart and it made her next breath difficult to take in. 

“Well,” Felicity managed. “We’re always here. You can use us whenever you need to. I mean, her. Not us. Not me, I’m not… That sounded like a proposition and it wasn’t, I swear. I mean, you can come over here and take her whenever you want. We’re equal opportunity over here. She is. Artemis, that is.”

He didn’t respond right away, but when he did, it was with a smile that left her mouth dry.

God, he was _beautiful_ when he smiled.

“I might do that,” he told her.

“Okay. Good. Great.”

“Have a good day, Felicity.”

“You too.”

Oliver shocked her even more when he reached out and scratched the puppy’s head. “Bye, Artie.”

He didn’t give Felicity the chance to comprehend the complete one-eighty he had done before he disappeared down the hall.

“I have a new nickname for you,” Felicity told the dog. “Oliver Queen Kryptonite.”

With a grin, she shut her door, continuing her conversation with her puppy, wondering if - _when_ \- he’d be back.  



	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> With Artie's help, Oliver and Felicity get a little closer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The response to this story has been _incredible_ , thank you so much! I hope you enjoy the second part, and Part 3 will be up tomorrow!

A blur of dog greeted Felicity when she opened the door to Queen Manor.

“Artie!”

She dropped her purse and jacket on the ground and stooped down, scratching the slobbering face of her pit bull. The growing puppy was all energy and grins, her tongue hanging out as Felicity smooshed her face all over with cooing noises that fill the anteroom of the house.

“Who’s my big girl?” Felicity scratched Artemis all over. A low growly hum emitted from the dog as Felicity got into her sides, rubbing all over her beautiful blue-grey fur. “Oh yeah, that’s the stuff right there. We need all the lovin’s, don’t we? Because we never get any, not ever. Nope, not even from that grumpy landlord of ours who insists he doesn’t care. But he does, doesn’t he? Oh yes he does because here you are, not in my room but greeting me at the front door as the best welcoming committee _ever_.”

Artie leaned her full body weight into Felicity’s legs, nearly knocking her down. Felicity laughed, kissing Artie all over her face before standing.

The most delicious smell hovered in the air and Felicity inhaled it greedily.

“ _Yes_ ,” she said, grabbing her stuff off the floor and hurrying to the kitchen. “Are we finally going to see the magical human who leaves food for us? Well, not us so much as me, but you get to enjoy the smells and they’re almost as good.”

Felicity followed the clinks and clanks of pots and silverware, the smells somehow getting better. She wasn’t sure how, but proximity was definitely a thing.

She breezed through the swing door. “God, that smells amazing.”

Broad shoulders she instantly recognized had her jerking to a stop. Her astonishment doubled - nay, _quadrupled_ \- when Oliver Queen himself turned to glance back at her with a soft, “Thank you.”

“You cook?” Felicity demanded, dumping her stuff on the kitchen table and sidling up next to him. “This entire time, all the food that appears in here, that’s been you?”

Oliver shrugged, stirring some sort of heavenly-smelling sauce. “It gives me something to focus on.”

“I’m really glad to hear that,” Felicity told him as she snagged something roasted and vegetable-like from a pan nearby. He moved to smack her hand, but she got the pepper in her mouth before he could and gave him a huge smile. “For selfish reasons, of course,” she added. “I am glad you have something to focus on, but also, everything you cook is incredible and for someone who can only claim to be a culinary microwave expert, I appreciate it. A lot. I don’t think you realize the good deed you are doing. These are real nutrients instead of the chemically-induced messes of whatever pre-packaged thing I’d make. Thank you.”

Felicity grabbed his shoulder for leverage and pushed onto her toes to kiss his cheek.

It stunned her as much as him. She fell back to her feet, her lips tingling from his stubble. It was unbelievably soft.

He cleared his throat and turned back to the sauce with a low, “I’m glad.”

Felicity’s eyes danced over his profile, noting the deeper color in his cheeks. She knew it was the heat of the kitchen making him flush and not her. But oh to dream.

And dream she did.

Which was so not a thing she should be thinking about right now with the ghost of her lips on his cheek taunting her.

She absently licked them just as Oliver glanced over to catch her still staring at him.

His gaze nailed her in place, narrowing just enough to ignite a needy tug deep inside her. Her fingers dug into his shoulder on reflex as her heart slammed into the ground. Oh, this was…

This was her landlord.

“Was Artemis good while I was out?” Felicity asked loudly - _too loudly_ \- as she quickly turned away.

“She always is,” Oliver replied from behind her. His voice was loud enough she knew he had turned to face her. She also knew that the burn in the middle of her back was totally her imagination and not his eyes on her.

“I know she loves hanging out with you instead of being cooped up in my room,” Felicity told him, scrunching her nose up at the puppy in question. “Don’t you? Yes, you do, oh yes you do.”

She didn’t even think as she wiggled her entire body in a way that had Artie’s entire body excitedly wiggling in return. She laughed and looked back to see if Oliver had seen it. He wasn’t looking at Artie, though. His eyes were on _her_. Her chest rolled, the little tug in the pit of her stomach going further down. It was over as soon as it started, though, and Oliver spun back to the stove.

The air was somehow _more_ charged now.

“I like the company,” he offered.

“Do you hear that?” Felicity asked the dog. If her voice was a little rougher, well, it was because she was thirsty. _Not for water_. Ignoring her brain, Felicity made her way to the french double doors that opened into the enormous backyard. “He likes your company. But who wouldn’t with that adorable face?” She opened one and Artemis took off in a blast, leaving some hair lingering in the air behind her. Felicity laughed, watching the dog tear across the large backyard. “Thank you,” she said over her shoulder to Oliver, even though her eyes never left Artemis. “It means a lot knowing someone is here who doesn’t just think she’s an annoyance.”

“She’s far too cute to be an annoyance.”

“So does that mean you like her now?” Felicity teased, glancing back at him.

She caught enough of his profile to see him rolling his lips together in an attempt to fight a smile.

He didn’t smile often, this man. He had more demons than anyone she had ever met, and oh she’d met a few. But none of them were quite like Oliver Queen. In the keep-my-personal-horrors-buried-as-deep-as-possible aspect, and in others. Many others. Like cooking, apparently, and keeping his door open for Artemis at night now instead of making her crawl through the mucky corridor connecting their rooms. And that every once in a great while, he gifted Felicity with a grin, even if made him grimace, like he’d forgotten what it was like. And she wasn’t above mentioning the absolutely killer muscles he sported. He didn’t look like he ate any of the food he made. If he did, he’d have a little belly like the one she was starting to get. But not him. She was willing to bet a million dollars that his abs were the kind of abs people wrote about in romance novels.

They were that good and she didn’t even have to see them.

“It should be ready in about twenty minutes,” Oliver offered, looking back at her.

He caught her staring and with a start, her eyes flew to his. Felicity opened her mouth to say something - _anything, oh my god_ \- to divert the attention away from her stupid wandering eyes. But then her gaze caught on his. It _seared_ right through her. The once-flat blue that she was certain mirrored his dislike of her were now a deep molten cerulean.

Heat licked at her, tugged at her core, flooded her veins.

Neither of them moved.

His eyes dropped to her lips.

The air sucked out of the room, instantly replaced with a blazing awareness that made her mouth dry and her breasts grow hot and heavy under her t-shirt.

A yelp broke the moment.

Felicity’s head whipped to the backyard to find Artie limping towards her.

“Oh no,” she gasped and darted out to meet her. “Oh, what happened?” It took her a second to realize Oliver was right on her heels, catching up in the blink of an eye and reaching Artie at the same time she did. Whimpers escaped the pit bull as she fell over onto her side, her luminous silver eyes staring up at Felicity, pain creasing her little face. “What’d you do, what happened?” Felicity asked her again and the puppy answered by going for her back paw. Her very bloodied back paw. Felicity hissed. Bright red smeared her once-grey coat. A little pink tongue swipe it away, but more oozed to the surface. So much more. Her stomach turned. “Let me look,” Felicity urged, pushing Artie’s face away just enough to see where the blood was coming from. She gingerly picked the paw up and spread her little toes to see she’d cut through the webbing there. “Oh Artie.”

Blood flooded the cut, coating Felicity’s hand and Artie’s paw. With a whine and a desperate look in her eyes, Artemis arched back to get the paw back into her mouth, but Felicity stopped her. She didn’t like that one bit and tried harder with a pathetic sounding growl, her little puppy teeth nipping at Felicity’s hand.

“No, trust me, you don’t want to do that, baby girl,” Felicity told her, and it was only now that she heard the beginnings of a tremor in her voice. Her dog was _hurt_. Something had _hurt her dog_. “How did this happen? Is the grass made of razors, or did… did someone leave something out here? I’ll kill them. Right after I help you. I don’t know how to help you. What… We need to go to the vet. Do they take walk-ins? I don’t know, I don’t even know their number. How do I not know their number? We were just there, weren’t we? I need their number!”

“Easy.” The order came out in a soft, unassuming voice, but the authority in it was undeniable. Oliver’s large hand smoothed across Felicity’s back. It helped. It grounded her. _He_ grounded her. She watched him tug his shirt off. “Here we go,” he crooned to the puppy. He took the paw from Felicity and gently wrapped it. “That’ll keep you away from it for a minute.”

“Thank you,” Felicity said. She blinked away a sudden burst of tears and let out an uneven bark of laughter. “Wow, this is more intense than I thought it would be. Artie getting hurt, I mean. I just… I didn’t think I’d be so… weepy.”

“Your little girl’s hurt,” Oliver replied, giving her a gentle smile. It somehow both calmed her down and made her heart flip-flop a couple dozen times. “It’s overwhelming. Come on, the cut looked pretty bad, you should take her in.”

“Yeah. Yes. I will. Right now.”

Oliver bundled Artie into his arms and stood up.

Felicity followed after a beat, stealing the moment to take a deep breath before standing on oddly shaky feet.

When she turned to follow, she couldn’t hide the horrified gasp that escaped her. 

Oliver’s back was covered in scars. Some old, some still a little pink. There were ragged holes like he’d been shot, and there were long, willowy tendrils. From a whip, her mind supplied. Her eyes burned with another reason entirely at the sight. Smaller scars littered the rest of him, twisting and turning, some deep and ugly as if they had never healed right while others had to catch the sunlight to be seen. But the worst one was across his lower back, a burn scar that walked all the way across his skin, thick and mottled. When she managed to tear her eyes away from it, she noticed the faint outline of what looked like a dragon tattoo on his left shoulder blade.

He stiffened.

Tension turned his shoulders into the brick wall she knew so well, his muscles tightening up.

Her shock wore off barely a second later, but it was enough time to widen the emotional distance between them. In the blink of an eye, all that ground she’d fought tooth and nail for over the last two weeks morphed back into the barren landscape she encountered when she first applied to live in his house.

“Oliver…”

He turned to her, face blank, eyes flat, even under the blinding sun. Felicity’s eyes unwittingly dropped to his chest - more scars, more tattoos. God, what had happened to him? Her jaw dropped to ask that very question, but then he was coming back towards her. His face wasn’t blank any longer. No, it was taut with a fury she’d never seen before, all of it edged with shame and…

Sadness.

Without a word, Oliver handed Artie over to her and turned, getting away from her as fast as possible and she did nothing more than watch him until he was gone.

Felicity had no idea how long she stood there.

Too long, considering she had a bleeding dog in her arms. But her feet had melted into the grass, anchoring her in place, staring at where Oliver had just disappeared.

She thought she’d had an idea, about what he’d gone through, but she was wrong. So wrong.

And she’d made him feel bad about it.

Tears filled her eyes again only to vanish in a blink when Artemis wiggled in her arms.

It propelled Felicity forward, and with a nod, she shoved the moment down, focusing on her puppy.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Reviews literally feed the soul and muse.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Felicity deals with the fallout of her reaction to Oliver’s scars.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the awesome response!! I'm insanely happy that you guys love Artie as much as I do.

It took three hours and twenty-two minutes to get Artie’s paw taken care of.

Felicity just _had_ to choose to live at Queen Manor, didn’t she, on the outskirts of _everything_ and in the middle of _nowhere_.

She finally made it home after an x-ray, a lot of puppy cries that positively shredded Felicity’s heart, a bundle of bandages that Artemis immediately tried to start chewing through, a cone that she absolutely could not maneuver, and a lecture about rogue sprinkler heads.

To say Felicity was exhausted was an understatement. She was thankful nobody was around to ask her what happened when she entered the house. The kitchen was also blissfully empty. After a lot of cajoling, she got Artemis to go to the bathroom, fed her, peanut-buttered up some antibiotics and pain pills for her, and then ambled upstairs with a doped up pit bull in her arms.

Her stomach growled, but she couldn’t bring herself to touch any of the food Oliver had made. It was her penance for being a complete and total jerk earlier.

Jerk was putting it mildly. She knew exactly why she was so tired - in-between waiting for the vet and getting Artie’s little toes wrapped up, all she had been able to think about was the way Oliver had stiffened, like he’d been electrocuted. And the look on his face…

Guilt welled up, nearly drowning her.

Felicity bundled the puppy into her bed and proceeded to shower off the day. It helped, a little. Enough. Ish.

Would he talk to her tomorrow? Or would he go back to being the gruff, cold man she’d first met? The thought alone twisted her heart, sucking out every last drop of hope until all she had left was stooped shoulders and an aching hole in her chest. He had trusted her enough to take his shirt off in the first place, and she’d reacted with horror. How could she do that? She didn’t see the scars. She saw _him_. But earlier, that wasn’t how she’d acted at all.

Feeling even more beaten down than when she’d gotten in, Felicity dried off and went to grab her pajamas.

Only to find Artie trying to shove her cone-covered head into the false panel in her closet.

“Artemis! No, no, no.” Felicity snatched her up. “Even if you could walk with this thing on, it’s way too dirty in there.”

The pit bull let out a pitiful noise.

“I know,” Felicity replied. “But not tonight, okay? Even if you were up to, I don’t think he is. Or will be. Ever again. And it’s my fault. I’m sorry. Hopefully I’m an okay substitute.” She petted her head inside the cone with a soft sight. “And hopefully he does okay tonight.”

Artemis seemed to understand.

Until she didn’t.

“Okay, Artie, you need to stop,” Felicity bemoaned. “Please stop whining.”

But she didn’t. And despite her best efforts, Felicity could not get the puppy to settle. She should be knocked out, if the bottle of pain pills she had was to be believed, but not this dog. Nope, this dog had attachment issues and like a fool, Felicity had encouraged them, thinking it was sweet.

“Stupid,” she grumbled into her pillow.

It wasn’t sweet. It was annoying her. To death.

Felicity propped up onto her elbows. “You need to sleep. Almost as much as I do. You’ve been through a trauma today, how are you not falling over?”

Artie whined in response where she sat by the closet. And kept whining.

It lasted forever and an hour before Felicity finally gave in with a defeated groan. Later she would know it was pure exhaustion with a hint of anxiety and a whole dose of frazzled nerves that pushed her into action, but right now all she knew was that she couldn’t take this anymore.

“Who’s the adult here?” Felicity asked as she trudged down the hallway, Artie in her arms. “It isn’t me because if it was me, you’d lay your butt down and we’d get some sleep instead of going to…”

Oliver’s door came into sight.

It was closed.

Felicity’s heart sank as she stopped dead in her tracks. Of course it was closed. She had been the one to close it, hadn’t she? Yes, she had. Figuratively, at least. And now here she was, so tired her eyes blurred with a whining dog locked in her arms. She hadn’t really thought any of her actions through, had she? No. All she’d known was that Artemis really liked him, that she settled him when he had nightmares, and that he seemed to agree on both counts because he kept inviting the puppy into his apartment.

Until now.

“I’m sorry,” Felicity whispered.

She wasn’t sure if she was talking to Artemis or Oliver.

Gnawing on the corner of her mouth, she turned to go back to her own apartment.

A soft click and then a low, “Felicity?”

Her insides rocketed to the floor and she stopped mid-step. She didn’t look, because maybe it was her imagination, but Artemis perked up. Holding her breath, she turned to find Oliver standing in his doorway. Felicity braced herself, expecting the soft voice she just heard to be a trick her ears played on her, but when she met his eyes, all the harshness from earlier was gone. Now all she saw was the gentleness she’d come to associate with him.

It undid her completely.

“Is Artie okay?” he asked, stepping towards her, all his attention on the puppy who turned into a wiggling machine of joy in Felicity’s arms the closer he got.

Right. He was worried about Artie and her cut paw. As well he should be, she told herself.

That hurt, but that was her problem, wasn’t it? She hadn’t exactly given him a bunch of reasons to care about her feelings, had she? No, she took the minute bit of trust he’d given her and set it on fire.

Now all they shared was her dog.

Which was fine. It was what she wanted. It _was_.

That pill was a bitter one, but she swallowed it down and forced a smile to her lips.

“Yeah,” Felicity replied, lifting Artie up for inspection. Oliver’s clean, woodsy scent reached her before he did. She breathed it in, reveling in the comfort it gave her before she caught herself. _This is about Artemis_ , she reminded herself. The reminder didn’t work as Oliver picked up Artie’s bandaged paw, an act that for some reason made Felicity’s insides do a triple backwards flip. She cleared her throat and forced herself to keep talking. “They didn’t stitch it up since apparently it heals better this way. Well, that, and also because she’s a puppy and keeping her away from stitches for as long as they need to be in would be next to impossible. But she’s going to be okay.”

“Did they say what caused it?” he asked. He only had eyes for Artemis, and Felicity watched as his face softened even more when Artie let out a little bark. It was enough for him to lean forward and get a puppy kiss on the lips.

She was not jealous of a dog.

“The vet guessed a rogue sprinkler head, maybe.”

Oliver frowned. “I’ll have the backyard checked tomorrow.”

It wasn’t a skip her heart did. It was more of a tumble down a giant mountain. “Thank you.”

“Was there something you needed?” he asked. He finally looked at her and for a second, she forgot what she was doing there. Until she realized that the warmth she was used to seeing in his gaze was muted, hidden behind a courteous wall.

“She wants you,” Felicity said abruptly. His brow furrowed and she thrust the puppy at him. Oliver took her, adjusting to avoid smacking his face on her cone. “She should be sleeping, according to the pain pills I gave her, but she’s very wide awake because she can’t sleep without you now. I’ve created a monster. And I’m sorry about that.”

He huffed out what someone might call a laugh. “It’s alright.”

“She can stay?” Felicity asked.

“Of course. She’s always welcome.”

“It’s just… Well, your door was closed, and I thought… After earlier, I thought…” Felicity closed her eyes and shook her head. “You know what, let’s pretend I never opened my mouth. I’m gonna go back to my room. I’ll… see you in the morning.”

Oliver stared at her with unreadable eyes. “Okay.”

With a nod, Felicity headed back to her room. The thought of leaving her puppy behind when she was injured nearly had her taking the pit bull back, whining be damned. She’d wear herself out, right? Artie had boundless energy, but it had a limit. It had to. But she was clearly more content with Oliver at night. Which was fine. It was good. It gave Artemis purpose. Or something. How could she just leave her? How could she ask that when she was the one who’d brought her here?

She wasn’t going to sleep tonight, was she? Nope.

Ultimately it was the thought of having to face Oliver again that kept her moving.

Despite that, the urge to look back was too strong and she glanced over her shoulder.

Oliver hadn’t moved, and both he and Artemis watched her.

When they disappeared from view as she rounded a corner, a little whine reached her ears.

Felicity twisted around so fast she nearly gave herself whiplash.

“Is she okay?” she called down the hallway. The instant Artemis saw her she calmed down.

Oliver pressed his lips together, like he was fighting a smile. “She stopped when she saw you.”

A lurch in her heart had a blur of tears burning her eyes. Felicity huffed to herself - _get a grip_. But the thought of her puppy missing her, especially when she was clearly hurt? And wanting her? Well, it was nice, especially since she’d insisted on making Felicity come down here and hand her off to Oliver.

So what now? It’s not like she could _stay_.

When neither Oliver nor Artemis did anything to give her direction, Felicity told herself to move. And she did, with a little nod, turning around the corner again.

Another whine, this one louder and high-pitched.

But instead of freaking out, Felicity found herself laughing.

Just like that, a pressure valve released deep inside her. Things were fine. Artie was okay, and so was she. And Oliver didn’t hate her, not like she’d feared. He might not want to be as close to her as he had been becoming, but that was okay. Felicity was nothing if not stubborn, and if that meant a little more elbow grease to show him that she didn’t mean to hurt his feelings, that she didn’t view him as anything less than amazing, then she was going to do it. She was the crazy lady who brought her dog to her landlord’s door to soothe his nightmares after accidentally sneaking into his room.

She could do anything, damn it.

Feeling lighter than she had all night, Felicity came back around the corner. She almost stopped dead in her tracks when she saw the smile on Oliver’s face.

It made her heart stop, even though her feet continued forward.

“Are you being a manipulative little butt?” Felicity asked Artemis. The puppy replied with a happy little pant that morphed into a grin the closer Felicity got. Oliver chuckled and it had Felicity’s eyes flying back to him. “I’m sorry. Apparently she’s high maintenance. I would say it’s the injury, but I’m pretty sure it’s just her.”

“It’s okay.”

That cold, empty look he had given her that afternoon was gone, as if it had never happened, and in its place was that decadent molten cerulean.

Felicity lost her breath, her chest rolling, her stomach dropping.

“I’m sorry about earlier,” she said. He went very still and her eyes shot wide - she hadn’t planned that. But the words were out and she wasn’t going to leave them hanging. “I didn’t know, and I don’t handle surprises very well, so I stared instead of, you know, not making a big deal. I’m sorry.”

“I should be the one apologizing.” He spoke the second she was done and he didn’t stop staring at her, even as her eyes bugged in confusion. “It was…. It was just the first time anyone has seen them outside of the hospital.”

“Oh.”

Felicity’s heart swelled as much as it clenched in agony. He trusted her enough to feel comfortable in taking his shirt off, and that he had done it without a second thought, only caring about Artemis? That destroyed her in the best way possible. But that nobody had seen them since he had been back from that island? That was monthsago. She knew he cut himself off, she just never realized how much.

But he had let her in. Or, rather, Artemis. Same difference, apparently, because her heart reacted as if it was Felicity he’d let in despite having every reason not to.

Oliver watched her go through her thought process, his gaze more astute than she would have liked because she was pretty sure he was reading her like a book. She didn’t hide any of it, though. He didn’t hide from her, did he?

He sighed after a moment and it occurred to her that he might’ve been looking for pity. And he hadn’t found it.

Oliver cleared his throat and looked at Artemis. “She seems okay now.”

His words jolted her back to the world. “Yeah. I guess I should…”

“No,” he interrupted. “I mean, she seems okay when we’re both here.” Felicity wasn’t sure she’d heard him right. “If you want, you could stay here. Tonight.”

He was inviting her to stay in his apartment. With him. And Artemis.

Felicity knew her jaw was unhinged and eyes wide in surprise, because after a beat he added, “It was just a thought. For Artie’s sake. I don’t want to make you uncomfortable-”

“I’d love to.”

A flicker of delight crossed Oliver’s face before he gave her a whispered, “Good.”

“Are _you_ okay with that?”

The delight disappeared in a blink as the insinuation behind her words landed.

_You have nightmares, really bad ones, and I know that because I’ve seen them even though we don’t talk about it, and that’s not even mentioning that you freaked out earlier when I freaked out about the physical evidence of what you had to endure for what I can only assume was five years of pure hell and what you probably see when you close your eyes at night, so…_

“I don’t want to make you uncomfortable-”

“I wouldn’t be offering if I wasn’t comfortable with you, Felicity.”

“Oh.” Her cheeks caught fire and she rolled her lips together against a pleased smile. “I’m glad.”

His eyes danced across her face before settling on her lips - and yes, that absolutely turned her chest cavity into a fireworks display - before he stepped back, waving her ahead of him.

Into his room.

Tugging her bottom lip into her mouth, she walked in.

It was different from the last time she’d been there. Admittedly, that had been in the middle of the night when she was frantic to find her dog. Most of the lights were off like last time, save for the lamp on his nightstand.

Shining from his bedroom.

Felicity stopped. It was presumptuous to just barge in there, right? Right.

Oliver set Artie down and the puppy ambled - limped and tumbled with her bandaged paw and cone - right past Felicity and into the bedroom.

His fingers ghosted over her lower back. “She knows the way.”

Felicity turned, wondering if the smile she heard in his voice was her imagination. It wasn’t. It was small, like most of them, but this one seemed softer. More intimate. Or maybe she just thought it did because he was pushing her towards his bedroom. Nerves trampled the lining of her stomach, and like he knew, he pressed his hand more firmly to her lower back with a nod and a silent, _Go ahead_.

It shouldn’t have soothed her, she thought. This was borderline ludicrous, agreeing to this. No, the ludicrous part was pushing herself on him like she had. Or, maybe the most ludicrous of all was that all of that had led up to this moment. It shouldn’t have been calming, or made her feel safe.

But it did.

She trusted him.

Felicity followed the puppy into his bedroom.

Her eyes instantly latched onto the bed - it was bigger than she remembered, able to fit at least five Olivers comfortably, and still as perfectly made as the last time she’d been there. And right beside the bed, next to the nightstand, was the same pallet of blankets she’d seen before. Artemis made a beeline for it, as if there was a routine - which, okay, yeah, there probably was - and plopped down on the thin pillow with a huff.

Well, at least _she_ was comfortable.

The second Oliver entered behind her, he stopped, as if the weight of what was happening was hitting him just as hard. She bit the tip of her tongue, swore she heard him gulp, and just when the silence was too much - _I should go because this is weird, right?_ \- he spoke up.

“You can take the bed,” Oliver told her. He waved at the huge, untouched monstrosity. “The sheets are clean.”

The detached way he said those simple words gave her pause. She had no doubt that was true. Oliver had someone who came in to clean the communal areas of the house, and she was sure Raisa cleaned up in here as well because there wasn’t even a speck of dust on the luxurious comforter. But that wasn’t what made her pause. It was the idea that he had been found in October of last year and for nearly five months, he hadn’t slept in the bed once.

Her eyes dropped to the pallet, haphazardly tossed on the floor.

Raisa didn’t know, she realized. There were a handful of people she saw Oliver interact with and Raisa was one of them. She treated him more like a son than someone who employed her, which made sense since she’s heard Raisa had worked with the Queen family before the incident. As tempted as Felicity had been to look into his history - oh, she had been tempted because Oliver was a mystery with a capital M and those bugged her - she hadn’t checked to confirm that. It was his story to tell, not hers to dig up.

Either way, if Raisa saw the way he slept every night, she would have done something about it.

So the fact that he was letting Felicity see?

That rattled her, and she had no idea if it was in a good way or a bad way.

Artie’s yelpy bark broke the inadvertent stalemate, as if to say, _‘Just get up there, Mom, oh my god.’_

Felicity jumped and Oliver huffed out a chuckle while she narrowed her eyes at the puppy.

“Okay, sassy girl, I’m going,” Felicity replied. She glanced back at Oliver with a sheepish smile. “It’s pretty clear who the boss is in this relationship, isn’t it?”

“Oh, trust me, she’s got me wrapped around her little paw,” Oliver replied.

“She’s really good at that, isn’t she?” Felicity asked, letting the safe territory of an Artemis conversation carry her feet forward to the bed. She kept that secure talk blanket wrapped tight around her as she moved to the side of the bed where the floor wasn’t currently occupied by a couple of blankets and a dog to start untucking the perfectly made bed. That was why she was here, right? For Artie, her ridiculously manipulative pit bull.

The reminder soothed her as she climbed into the bed.

When Oliver didn’t say anything, she glanced back at him.

He hadn’t moved, but not because of the weird stalemate. Because he was watching her.

The air sizzled with electricity, sparking with heated jolts that took her breath away. His molten blue eyes sliced into her, so deep she knew it would leave a mark. It made her response to him all the more vivid. It rose up, coiling inside her, twisting, turning, _burning_.

One second she thought she was floating above her body, all her attention fastened on him, and the next she was painfully aware of the soft sheets under her hands and knees, the cool air gliding over her dampening skin, the familiar woodsy smell that somehow both settled her and set her blood on fire. An invisible string tugged on her, urging her closer to him, and she leaned into it, swaying forward. He felt it, too, he had to, because she swore he was about to move. To take a step forward. Towards her. Her core clenched in anticipation and her lips parted, preparing, welcoming…

Another yip from Artie broke the tension once more.

Oliver cleared his throat, looking away, and Felicity whipped her head to the mound of pillows. She fluffed them up, making a show of it.

“Does she, uh…?” he started and she gave a vague, “Hmm?” in response. Oliver cleared his throat again before asking, “Is she sleeping with that thing on her?”

“Oh, the cone?” Felicity glanced over the edge of the bed and spotted the puppy curled up against Oliver’s meager pillow. She didn’t look like it was cumbersome to her, but she was sure Oliver was thinking about having to sleep with that thing. The image of Artemis struggling to shove her head into his neck with the cone almost made her laugh. “Yeah. The vet said to see how she does with it, and I can try taking it off, but she’ll probably just go for her paw and she needs to not do that. Do you want me to bring her up here?”

“No,” he answered without hesitation as he dropped to the floor. “No, we’ll make it work. Won’t we, girl?”

Excited, gleeful whimpers sounded followed by the brush of his calloused palm against her little face.

Felicity smiled as she settled into the bed. “She really likes you.”

“The feeling is mutual,” he replied. She couldn’t seem him from where she lay on the bed above him, but Felicity swore she heard that smile in his voice. For a second, she let herself entertain the idea that they weren’t talking about Artemis.

Except they were.

When Felicity was comfortable - as comfortable as someone can get in a situation like this, because _hello_? - she felt the immediate pull of sleep. The excitement of the afternoon on top of the accidental emotional rollercoaster she had inadvertently thrown herself on caught up with her in one fell swoop. Her lids grew heavy, her muscles becoming one with the mattress, her limbs turning into useless lumps.

Movement caught her eye and she opened them just enough to catch Oliver turning the light off.

“Is this okay?” he asked softly.

“Yeah,” Felicity whispered, slipped her glasses off. She dropped them somewhere on the nightstand as her eyes fell shut again. “Yeah, it’s…”

She fell asleep.

A quiet whimper and sharp movements jolted her awake.

Caught somewhere between the dream world and reality, her mind drifted back in time.

_… window shattering, a shadowy body falling through it, moonlight catching the thick blade of a serrated knife, shouts, ranting and raving, her scream…_

Felicity yanked herself out of the memory with a terrified gasp.

She wasn’t in her old apartment. She was safe. Secure. He wasn’t there.

Her heart thudded viciously in her chest and she pressed a palm to it, realizing a second later that her skin was wet with a sudden cold sweat. Just to be sure, she glanced around, but it wasn’t her old apartment.

It was Oliver’s room.

 _Oh. Right_.

Rustling from the side of the bed caught her attention, followed by a soft whine that had to be Artemis and a whimper that was most definitely human.

“Oliver,” Felicity whispered before she could stop herself. No, she did that on purpose. What she didn’t think about before she did it was reaching over the side of the bed and touching him. It was stupid, and dangerous, but that didn’t stop her sleep-adled self. She scooted over to the edge of the mattress to reach him with another, “Oliver, you’re okay,” before her fingers grazed his shoulder.

His t-shirt was soaked through with sweat and the muscle underneath it was hard as a rock. It tensed further, unyielding, rippling like he was preparing to fight.

That should have been a red flag.

Instead Felicity draped her hand over his shoulder and squeezed.

“Oliver.”

He jerked awake. He choked, like he couldn’t breathe, and then he managed a sharp inhale that reminded her of broken glass under a tire. She winced, but she didn’t let go, even as he jerked again, harder, nearly dislodging her hold on him. _Now would be the time to stop touching him_ , she told herself, but she didn’t. The pale outline of Artie’s cone as she tried to get closer to him caught her eye, but that had nothing on Oliver flipping onto his back with a series of quick, ragged breaths sawing in and out of him.

“Oliv-”

His hand flashed up to hers. With a start, she tried to pull back. But it wasn’t to push her away.

Oliver grabbed her hand and squeezed, holding on so tight it ached. She instinctively grabbed him back just as hard. He trembled, and she found herself mumbling soft nothings, barely audible even in the quiet of the bedroom. It must have worked because the tension slowly drained from him. The desperation in his grip faded.

She wasn’t sure how long they sat there, holding each other. A while, surely, because her arm started to tingle from the weird angle. She didn’t want to let him go, though, or give him any reason to let her go, so she adjusted.

His fear of the same thing translated in the sudden squeeze of his fingers around hers.

And then he realized what he was doing.

“Sorry,” Oliver said, his rough voice scraping over her senses, his grip loosening.

“No.” Felicity held him tighter. “I don’t mind. I promise.”

Silence greeted her and the strangest thing entered her awareness. How _warm_ his hand was, and how calloused. The fingertips, especially.

“It helps.”

Felicity smiled. Being there for him like this, being able to help, and him letting her do it in the first place… It was nice, and she liked it.

A lot.

More than a lot.

A nervous fissure opened up in her chest.

“Say what you will about Smoak women,” she blurted, “but we’re good in moments of crisis.” The words inadvertently shot her into the past and she cringed. To escape it, she kept talking. “And I meant both Artie and I. She’s really good at being there for you when you need her to be.”

“So are you.”

A blush heated her cheeks and Felicity bit her bottom lip on a grin.

“How is our girl doing down there?” she asked quietly.

 _Our girl_.

Her entire heart somersaulted. Just flipped right then and there, valves, arteries, veins, and all.

When Oliver replied with, “She’s good,” it was to the background music of the now-familiar rasp of his hand sliding down Artie’s back. “She’s awake. I think she’s waiting for something.”

“For what?”

“I, uh…” He cleared his throat and shifted. But he never let her hand go. “I talk to her.”

His voice was so small, but there was something else in the admission. _Wonder_ , like he couldn’t believe what he was talking about, or to who. She waited, hoping he’d continue. He didn’t disappoint.

“She helps calm me down,” Oliver went on, that wonder growing. His hair rasping against his pillow sounded and she peeked over the mattress edge. It was too dark, but she imagined him looking down at Artemis. “I think having her here anchors me, reminds me I can’t get lost in my head, because if I do, I might hurt her.”

Felicity nodded. That made sense. That’s how she’d felt the first few weeks with Artie in her bed.

“But it’s not just that,” he said, his fingers drifting across the inside of her wrist. “I also… talk to her.”

“You can talk to me.”

The words were out the second she thought them. Felicity expected a heavy kickback from her common sense - a bit of _girl, whatchu doin’?!_ with some _The last time you got involved with someone, it didn’t end well, and this someone has way more baggage than Cooper did_ \- but none of that came. Her _conscious_ self tried to talk to her, but the rest of her - that sure feeling in her gut, that warmth in her chest, that comfort that told her she was safe with him, no matter what - told another story.

She chose to go with that.

“If you want,” Felicity added. “You don’t have to. But I’m here.”

She had no idea how much time passed this time, but it felt like an eternity. Except it wasn’t an uncomfortable eternity, not at all.

With a gentle squeeze of her hand, Oliver started talking. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Reviews literally feed the soul and muse.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Felicity has trauma of her own, but just like Oliver, she doesn’t have to deal with it alone.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for the awesome response to the story!! The final part will be up tomorrow!

It started out with a few raindrops.

They pelted her large picture window, soft and gentle, almost romantic. She could handle that. Nothing bad happened during those kinds of rainstorms. In the very far distance, she caught a flash of lightning, but it was so far out there that it did little more than make her heart skip a beat. And then she was okay.

See? She was growing. Evolving.

Felicity turned back to her work. The clock in the corner of her screen told her it was one o’clock, which meant she could squeeze out a couple more hours of work, at the very least. Although if this jerk code had anything to say about it, it might be a bit longer.

“That is fine by me,” she mumbled, fingers flying over the keyboard.

She had her eighth cup of coffee around nine, which probably wasn’t the smartest plan, but hey, it meant a happier client sooner, and darn it, she was all about that customer service.

A crack of thunder rocked the house.

Felicity’s heart shot right out of her chest and she jumped, eyes flying to the window. All she saw was the blurry reflection of her bedroom. She hadn’t seen any lightning, had she? No, she would have noticed. Because she noticed those types of things now. Enough to take precautions, at least. When nothing happened, she checked the time again - it was nearly 1:30.

“See?” she said. She ignored the tremble in her voice. “Not that bad. It’s fine.”

Lightning shot through the sky, illuminating everything in a flash that made her yelp. Her heart raced so fast she could taste copper. Hugging her laptop to her chest, Felicity stared at the window.

“One… two… thr-”

Thunder cracked, so loud it drowned out her startled scream.

Before common sense could take over, the power went out in a whoosh, descending her world into darkness.

Felicity yelped, shoving herself up against the headboard. Another flash of lightning bleached the world, showcasing the sudden whip of wind that tore through the open yard outside her window. There were trees dotted all over the lawn, including one close to her window. But not close enough for anyone to actually climb up it. Because she had checked. She had made sure that couldn’t happen.

 _Not again. Never again_.

Her tree swayed in the heavy wind gusts, the branches reaching closer… closer…

The scrape against her window shot terror through her veins as another boom of thunder wrenched the sky open. Rain bombarded the house in vicious torrents. More lightning, then thunder, the tree reaching closer, so much closer.

In a flash, she didn’t see the branches any longer.

She saw hands, moving to crack the glass.

 _Coming in_.

Her desperate whine shot into a terrified cry and Felicity dropped her laptop. She slid off the edge of the bed, landing on the floor with a hard crash. She barely felt it. She pushed the nightstand away from the bed frame, so hard it knocked her lamp to the floor. Harder, harder, she pushed, her glasses slipping off, falling somewhere. When there was finally enough space, she shoved herself into the tiny spot, making herself as small as possible, burying her head into her knees. Fear like she hadn’t felt in months bled through her and it was all she could do to push herself back even further.

If she was small enough, he wouldn’t see her. Nothing would happen. He’d go away.

The storm raged.

“Go away, go away, go away.”

For the longest time, the only sound was her blood rushing through her ears, the rattle of the nightstand from her violent shaking, hard pellets of rain and thunder. So much thunder. Lightning lit everything up and even though her eyes were squeezed shut, she _swore_ she saw a figure breaking through the window, glass erupting around him in a shower of horror, an enraged shout of her name, the slash of a blade burying in her pillow, so close to her face, so close…

A little bark broke through.

Felicity latched onto the sound like the liferaft that it was and clung to it.

“Artie?” she croaked, forcing her eyes open.

Another bark and then a little body threw itself at her. The puppy wriggled into her arms and Felicity opened with a relieved little sigh. No, it was more of a laugh because the instant Artemis was in her arms, she calmed. Her baby girl pit bull beat back the fear with a happy grin and wet slobbery licks as she fought her way up Felicity’s chest to lick all over her face. She was getting so big that if Felicity hadn’t been propped between the nightstand and bed, she would have fallen over. Thankfully they’d let her go without the cone for a few days now and she was leaving her healing paw alone, far too interested in better things. Like licking Felicity’s skin off in an attempt to wipe away her tears.

The reprieve was short-lived, though.

Lightning lit up the room again, and a dark shadow caught her eye.

She tried to act, to think, but a shock of terror closed her throat, strangling the air right out of her. Thunder boomed, so close it shook the walls. Another flash of lightning flooded her room.

“Felicity?”

“Oliver.”

His name was a mixture of a breathy plea and a relieved sob. He slid out of her closet, shirtless and confused and worried, looking around for her. She pushed herself out of her self-made cubby and Artemis jumped out of the way to assist her.

The second Felicity was free, she launched herself at him.

Lightning lit things up just in time for him to see her.

Oliver caught her with open arms

Maybe it was a testament to who he was as a person, or maybe it was because of all the time they’d been spending together after she had slept in his room, but whatever it was, she was grateful for it because he instinctively yanked her up off her feet and cradled her to his chest.

“What is it, what’s wrong?” he asked, smoothing a hand down her unruly hair, his other arm banding around her back. His skin was so blissfully warm and the heat leached into her. When had it gotten so cold in her room? His grip loosened and she shook her head, winding her arms even tighter around his shoulders. “Hey, it’s okay, it’s okay, I’ve got you.”

And it was.

 _With him there_.

There was more lightning, more thunder, the storm gaining momentum like a shark scenting blood in the ocean. But despite that, the terror abated. Just a little, although that was more than enough for her to take a breath. When all she smelled was Oliver’s woodsy scent flirting with an edge of detergent, she calmed a little bit more.

She didn’t realize they were moving until she felt the edge of the bed against the back of her legs.

“Don’t go,” Felicity whispered into his neck. “Please.”

“I’m not going anywhere,” Oliver promised. He didn’t make a move to set her down and she knew he meant it. “You’re shaking really bad, though, so I think you should get back into bed. Is that okay?”

That was probably smart, and she knew it. But the thought of actually doing it - _of letting him go_ \- had her freezing again.

“You’ll stay?”

“I’ll stay.”

It was only when he repeated the words, squeezing her gently and rubbing his hand across her upper back, that she finally relented. The instant he set her down, a stab of panic nearly overtook her. But he stayed true to his word, not leaving. He urged her to the bed and she climbed in.

Artemis jumped up on her own and plopped down at the foot of the mattress as Felicity slipped under the covers, looking back to make sure he was staying.

She wanted him to join her, she realized. She _needed_ him to, and he didn’t disappoint.

Oliver paused long enough to move her discarded laptop to the nightstand and then he followed her, slipping under the covers as well.

“Wait, is this… You don’t have to do this,” she whispered, remembering he usually slept on the floor on a good day. “I mean, if the bed isn’t what-”

“Felicity,” Oliver interrupted. He dragged the syllables out, turning it into _Fe-li-ci-ty_. He said it with such familiarity that her face crinkled up and tears burned her eyes. “I’m fine right here. With you.”

“Okay,” she replied on a nod. Was her voice shaking as bad as she thought? “Good.”

“C’mere,” he murmured to her when he was fully under the comforter. With a relieved sigh, she dove into his arms. He snuggled her close and she responded by burrowing into his bare chest. “I’ve got you.”

He was big and warm and strong and soft and everything the harsh world wasn’t right now. He wrapped them up in the blanket even more and all of it was made better when Artemis migrated up and sprawled out against Felicity’s back, effectively bookending her in a cocoon of protection.

The storm raged on, but now it couldn’t touch her.

“Thank you,” Felicity whispered, inching even closer, pressing every bit of herself she could to him.

“Of course,” Oliver replied. He tightened his arms around her and pressed a soft kiss to her head. He didn’t move, lingering there, his breaths warming her even more. “I’m glad I can help.”

She nodded and pushed her face into his chest. Security wound around like a fuzzy wool blanket, dulling the outside world even more. On a shuddery sigh, she finally relaxed.

A moment passed before he ventured, “Is it the storm?” Felicity bit the tip of her tongue, so hard she winced. He must have felt it because he quickly added, “You don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to. I get it. But… I’m here. If you need me.”

She did need him. More than she knew what to do with.

The words tumbled out of her of their own volition.

“I have my own company, Smoak Technologies. Except you already knew that considering you commissioned me to design the security here. I… I had a boyfriend in college. Cooper. We were both scary good with computers and we had it in our heads that we should use it to do some good. Well, our definition of good. We called ourselves hacktivists. We hacked into everything and anything. We stole information, we erased school debt, we took money back from those we thought had been wronged. You know, just tried to Robin Hood our way through the world. Long story short, he got in trouble, and he… he took the fall for both of us. He ended up going to prison, where he… Where I thought he had killed himself. That’s what they told me. That he hung himself in his cell. But it was a lie, because he showed up about a year ago and apparently he’d been working for this governmental agency called AR… I can’t tell you, because I also do work for them and I signed an NDA and, wow, I’m babbling, please stop me.”

“I wouldn’t dare, I like it.” Felicity’s face warmed. She could honestly say she didn’t know the last time someone had said that to her. If ever. She bit her lip to stop from smiling and ducked her head, pressing her forehead to his scarred pec. He must have misread her silence because he added, “I won’t say anything, if that’s what you’re worried about.”

“No,” Felicity said. “It’s not that.”

The words hung there for a moment until she felt him smile, his stubble soft against the crown of her head.

“Anyway,” she continued, her voice a little lighter. Well, as light as it could, all things considered. “He used a virus I had designed, a very bad, very dangerous virus that could take out an entire city. It stopped _everything_ and he was using it to steal some money from these armored trucks from ARG… from the governmental agency. He just didn’t count on me being there to stop him. But I was, and I did, and when they found what he’d done, they tracked him down. But he wasn’t there. Because he had tracked _me_ down. Because of _coffee beans_. I really like these certain coffee beans and he followed the trail I didn’t even think about covering because who covers coffee bean trails? Why would I know to do that for my crazy, supposed-to-be-dead boyfriend from college? Nobody, that’s who!”

Hysteria edged her words.

Oliver held her tighter. To comfort her, or maybe because he knew where this was going.

“He… he found my apartment and… and there was a storm that night. I didn’t know he was there. I was in bed crying because he was alive and so mad because how dare he use something I had created as a weapon, and for money of all things. I don’t know how I heard it, but there was this scrape. On my window. The storm was so bad that I didn’t really know what it was until… until he… He broke through the glass. It was everywhere, covering everything, and then he was there and he had a knife and he swung it at…”

She didn’t know her words were turning into sobs until Oliver hushed her, cradling her closer.

Artie whined at her back, twisting to press her face into the back of Felicity’s neck.

“So,” Felicity finished on a broken surge. “Long story short, I don’t like storms anymore.”

Oliver’s voice was strangely devoid of emotion as he asked, “Is he…?”

“He’s dead.” The word came out on a croak. “ARG… My house was being watched for my protection, apparently, and they knew when he’d gotten there. He didn’t get the chance to do whatever he was there to do before a bunch of guys broke down my door and shot him in front of me. I watched him die.”

“I’m sorry,” Oliver whispered. The softness she’d come to associate with him was back and she wrapped it around her as tight as she could. “I’m sorry you went through that.”

“It’s why I got Artemis,” Felicity told him. “It’s also why I moved in here. I feel safe here.”

“I’m glad to hear that,” Oliver replied. “But now I feel like a dick for agreeing to take Artie every night.”

“No, don’t. That was my idea, remember? You are forbidden from feeling bad about it. She helps you so much, and she’s good at it, and she adores you, so I don’t want to hear it. Besides, she… While she did help, it wasn’t… The storms aren’t usually this bad. It’s been a while since I’ve lost it like this. I can usually handle the smaller ones just fine, it’s the big ones that make me, you know, catatonic. And it’s not until it’s over that it really goes away. Well, until now, I guess.”

 _Until you_.

Oliver cradled her closer in response.

They held each other in comfortable silence. The storm was still going, but it barely registered on her radar anymore. Instead, sleep started to beckon. The heavenly feeling draped over her and she settled into it with a grateful sigh.

Oliver shifted and her eyes shot back open. “Are you…?”

“No, I’m good,” he replied. “I’m more than good. Your bed is comfortable.”

“You don’t feel the urge to get down on the floor?” It was supposed to be a tease, but then the words registered and she grimaced. “I’m not trying to make light of-”

A soft laugh fell out of him as he shook his head. “You’re not,” he told her. “And I’m good right where I am. If you are?”

Relief saturated her entire body. “I am.”

“Good,” he whispered.

“Oliver?”

“Hmm?”

“How did you know what was happening?”

“I didn’t. Artie did.”

Yep, there go the waterworks. Felicity’s voice wobbled as she asked, “She did?”

“She heard you all the way from my room. She shot up and took off like a bullet to my closet,” Oliver told her. Felicity huffed out a laugh, suddenly understanding where this was going. “I didn’t know what was going on until she nosed her way into that door you mentioned before. It still didn’t click until she disappeared and I freaked out and followed her.”

“You actually fit in there?”

“No,” he admitted and Felicity laughed even louder. “I think I broke a few walls, and I’m pretty sure I destroyed the door in your closet coming out, but… Artie had pushed it open and I heard you and I just had to keep going.”

Felicity’s heart clenched. “Yeah?”

“I had to make sure you were okay.”

“I am now,” she whispered. “With you here. You make me feel safe.”

He smiled. “I know the feeling.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading! Reviews literally feed the soul and muse.


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The morning after.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you _so much_ for coming along with me on this fun, fluffy journey! I hope you enjoy the last installment.

Felicity woke slowly.

Beams of sunlight stretched across the bed, just starting to heat the room up. Dust and dog hair danced in its light, all cheerful and blissfully unaware of last night’s storm. Blue sky greeted her, not a cloud in sight that she could see, even without her glasses on.

God, it was frakking hot.

It was barely seven in the morning if she had to guess, there was no way the sun was hot enough to irritate her this much. Felicity groaned, smacking her lips, furrowing her brow as she lifted her head to look around.

Reality settled in quick and just like that, the night before rushed back.

She knew exactly why she was so hot.

A wall of muscle was at her back, a strong, thick forearm wrapped around her stomach, a large hand loose and relaxed… _under her shirt_. Slow, even breaths danced across the back of her neck where a stubbled face was buried in her hair. A large foot draped over one of hers, and the other was hooked between her calves, effectively tangling their legs together. And her hands? Oh, one was up underneath her pillow where his other hand had migrated the night before, their fingers touching, while the other…

She had reached back at some point and stuffed her hand under the band of his sweatpants. It rested on a very nicely toned - nay, very _muscular_ \- hip that was nearly as hot as his bare chest.

It was…

Jaw-dropping? Awe-inducing? Incredible? Fantastic? Ecstatic?

_Nice_.

Nice? Felicity barely stopped herself from snorting. That’s what she thought of this amazing moment that she had only dreamed of? Oliver Queen in her bed, her hand in his pants, his hand under her shirt, so comfortable with her that he was completely knocked out? In her _bed_ , no less. In _any_ bed, really, but that it was her bed, with her?

It was all of the above things, but it was also just… _nice_.

Comforting.

_Safe_.

As much as this was a lot of her fantasies coming to life, it was also the fact that he had come to her last night when she was scared and calmed her down. Made her feel secure in a way she hadn’t felt in a very long time. So secure that she had fallen asleep with the storm still shattering the world outside. And he’d fallen asleep, too. Had he had any nightmares? She would have felt them, surely, the way he was wrapped around her. And he was still sleeping, so deeply, somehow finding the security with her that he gave her.

Warmth filled her, suffusing every inch until she was floating.

Except she wasn’t. She was anchored to the earth. By him.

And her hand in his pants.

Felicity bit her lip on a grin and scrunched up her face to keep back a weird, shrieking noise that threatened to erupt from her throat.

She didn’t realize her fingers were drifting over his hip until he stirred.

Oliver didn’t wake right away, coming out of his sleep as slowly as she had.

She marveled at the way his muscles moved under her hand, flexing when he stretched. A low groan fell from his chest, so low she barely heard it. But she felt it, radiating into her back where he was flush against her. The sensation sent a bolt of awareness drifting down her spine and she shivered. The move inadvertently pressed her butt against him, more than it already was, but instead of waking him, it earned her another groan. This one was deeper. Huskier. Oliver burrowed his face into the back of her neck and took a deep breath. The hand under her pillow twined with her fingers as the one inside her shirt pressed more firmly against her abdomen. She tried to keep herself still, not wanting him to stop even for a second, but her breath stuttered out of her, forcing her stomach to dance under his touch. He seemed to like it, because he curled in even more around her. It forced her hand on his hip to slip in deeper.

And he was hard.

It had been so long since she’d felt someone’s touch like this, but it wasn’t just that. It was Oliver touching her, surrounding her, breathing her in.

Felicity’s head swam. Sensation flooded her. The world disappeared in hazy fog.

When his hand moved up and his fingers brushed the underside of her breasts, she couldn’t have stopped the moan that slipped out of her even if her life depended on it.

The sound jerked him the rest of the way into consciousness.

“Felicity?” he said in a roughened voice. He yanked his face from her hair and when he realized where he was, what he was doing, he moved to pull away. “I’m sorry, I didn’t-”

“No,” she interrupted, flipping onto her back.

His hand stayed put, something that sent a thrill through her, but hers slipped from the band of his sweatpants. Which was probably a good thing, she realized. Especially because if had stayed there her fingers would have ended up somewhere _else_.

_Not a bad thing. At all._

But maybe too much. Too fast?

Oliver’s hair stuck up in every direction. A deep indent from a wrinkle in the pillowcase was evident on his cheek and his eyelids were heavy with sleep.

His eyes were alert, though, and locked on her.

They should talk. Figure this out. Try to make sense of what they were feeling…

Felicity arched up off the bed and pressed her lips to his.

Or she could just _kiss him_.

It was nothing more than a peck, soft, dry lips pressing together, and then she fell back. Oliver’s eyes were closed, but the second she pulled away, they snapped back open. His pupils blew wide, nearly swallowing up the molten blue. No, earlier had been molten. Now his gaze scorched through her with an intensity that had her stomach swooping.

Oliver dove in for another kiss.

When their lips touched for a second time, she was lost.

This, this was jaw-dropping, awe-inducing, incredible, fantastic, pure ecstasy. His lips wrapped around her bottom one in a sensual pull before his tongue slid across it, begging her to meet him with hers. With an eager sigh, Felicity did just that. She pushed her hand into his thick hair, fisting it lightly, her other arm winding tight around him. She splayed her hand over his back, caressing his scars, feeling them, learning them, not hiding anything in her exploration. He shuddered, breaking free for air, but even that was too far away for too long. His lips found hers again. He cradled her to his chest as his other and slid up to her ribs. His thumb brushed the underside of her breast. When she nodded, her lips hitting his teeth, his stubble scraping her skin, he slid his hand up further and gently cupped the soft mound. Her hard nipple raked against his calloused palm, lighting a fire deep in her core, earning him a little cry. He swallowed it up, and it seemed to ignite his own fire. With a wild moan, Oliver surged forward, blanketing her even more. His rapidly growing hardness pressed into her hip and an ache deep inside her blossomed. An emptiness. A need. For him. Only for him.

The kiss spiraled, growing in fervor, and along with that, a desperation. It edged his kisses and the intensity of it was almost too much. He drank from her lips like a man who hadn’t tasted water in days. No, longer - weeks, maybe. Months. Years?

Underneath it all, though, was a need that matched her own. She met it with equal ardor, gasoline on a fire neither of them had meant to spark. But they had and neither of them moved to stop it.

The flames consumed them and they fell in with abandon.

Felicity twisted closer and threw a leg over his hip, urging him on top of her completely.

Oliver shifted onto her and she opened her legs for him. Hard met soft. They moved together, in tandem, hips flowing forward, against each other, eliciting more sounds, soft little moans under wet, heady kisses and gasps for air.

Up until Artie dove into the mix.

The pit bull appeared out of nowhere and started licking both of them.

Felicity laughed, turning to escape the puppy tongue. Oliver’s husky chuckle joined hers as he did the same, but Artemis seemed to take his denial on as a mission. She went after him and his laughter grew louder, unchecked. It was beautiful, even as he pulled his hand out of her tank top and buried his face into Felicity’s neck to escape the puppy. His whiskers tickled her neck, which had her laughing more, which in turn spurred Artemis on.

Soon, they were nothing more than a roving pile of giggles and dog licks with happy barks.

“Okay, okay, okay,” Felicity finally said, pushing Artie’s face away. “Okay, we get it.”

Artemis barked and Felicity was pretty sure she was saying, _‘Do you really?’_

“Not to kill the mood entirely,” Felicity said, fingers playing in the soft hair at the base of Oliver’s neck, “but I think she needs to pee.”

He lifted his head and looked at the dog. “You’re lucky you’re cute.”

Artie barked again. _‘You’re lucky I like you.’_

Felicity snorted, and it pulled Oliver’s attention back to her.

His lips were swollen, well-used, his lids heavy, but not with sleep. With lust. Need. Desire. And maybe even a little… happiness? It shined out of him and the sight set her heart racing. Especially when he smiled. God, that smile was dangerous. Like panty-melting dangerous. Which was happening. Right now. Arousal danced over her every nerve and she bit the edge of her lip. His eyes dropped to watch the move, the blue darkening, morphing into an alluring cobalt as his pupils widened.

Oliver leaned in for a kiss, but it was soft and chaste. The passion from before was still there, but it was subdued, buried under something else.

This wasn’t just lust between them.

When he tried to pull back, she slid her hands up the back of his neck to hold him in place and nuzzled his nose. He grinned against her and it was the most amazing feeling in the world.

Red caught her eye.

“What’s that?” she asked, urging him back.

Scratches covered his shoulders and chest.

“From last night,” Oliver supplied as her fingers ghosted over them. “That secret corridor isn’t built for anyone but Artemis-sized people.”

And yet he’d still pushed through.

Felicity met his gaze. “My hero.”

The words were meant to be cutesy, fun and adorable, a cherry on top of what was becoming an amazing morning, but then Oliver grimaced. Tension filled in his face and he shook his head with a gruff, “I’m nobody’s hero, Felicity.”

A rebuke was ready on her tongue, but she bit it back. Instead, she bit her tongue and stared at him. She could say as much as she wanted, but she knew none of it would land, not the way it would with other people. How long had it taken her to get him to talk to her without scowling? And it had taken _weeks_ for them to get to where they were now, and not by choice, really. It was more from a game of push and pull that wasn’t just words, but actions as well.

She was good with actions, and if that was what he needed? She would do her best to become _amazing_ at them.

Eyes never leaving his, Felicity stroked the new scratches before moving on to the older ones. Scars covered nearly every inch of him and it didn’t matter where her fingers landed, she found one.

His muscles grew taut, the tension spreading, his lips pursing, and she knew he wanted to tell her to stop, that she didn’t have to do this, that he didn’t need her to.

But he didn’t do any of that. Because he was comfortable with her? Because he trusted her? Because he needed it - this acceptance, this touch, this connection - more than he knew how to put into words?

The moment stretched on, Felicity touching him everywhere she could reach, and when that wasn’t enough, she leaned up and kissed a thick scar on his right pec. He shuddered, his head bowing over hers. She moved on to his left side, to a weird star tattoo that hovered over his heart.

She lingered there, wanting to imprint her lips on him.

“Felicity…”

“To me you are a hero,” she told him.

Vulnerability painted every inch of his face, filling his eyes, and she cupped his face.

“You are,” she confirmed.

Oliver swooped down. His lips slanted over hers and she immediately opened for him, taking as much as he wanted to give her, and giving every bit of it back. There was nothing one-sided about whatever it was that blossomed between them.

Artie barked.

On a laugh, Oliver pulled back once more. But he didn’t go far, dropping another kiss, one more, another on Felicity’s lips before finally looking at Artemis.

“Alright, we’re getting up,” he told the eager dog.

Artie’s tail went about a thousand miles a minute as she launched off the bed.

They climbed out of bed. They had to pause to rearrange their clothes - her tank had twisted around her entire torso - and adjusting pants - it was impossible to miss the tent in his sweatpants and she both licked her lips and blushed at the sight.

“We are so finishing this later,” Felicity said as she found her glasses.

“Yes, we definitely are,” Oliver growled in agreement before grabbing her for a quick, hard kiss. It set her even more ablaze, leaving them both gasping when he pulled away. He had to take one more kiss, though, like he couldn’t get enough. He smiled and she somehow managed to return it with pleasantly throbbing lips. “I’m going to go grab a shirt, but then how about some breakfast?”

“Oh yes, please,” she replied with a delighted grin. On a snicker, she tucked her finger into the band of his sweats and tugged it, making it snap against his skin. He jumped with a little, “Hey!” as she said, “I would love to see John’s face if he runs into you looking like this.”

“He’s seen worse, trust me.” They made it to the door. When Oliver opened it, Artie took off down the hall. He gave Felicity one more kiss. “See you downstairs.”

Felicity grinned against his lips. “‘Kay. Oh, but hey, can I put in a request for breakfast?”

“If it’s you asking, anything.”

That melted her into a useless puddle of goo. Well, not entirely useless. She was _hungry_.

“Cinnamon swirl pancakes? The ones with icing in the middle, all…” Felicity twirled her finger between them. “Mixed up in there. You know the ones.”

Oliver hummed with an amused tick of his lips. “I do. I remember those very well, mostly because a certain someone liked them a lot the last time I made them. So much, in fact, that you were moaning around your fork that you’d do absolutely anything to have them again.”

Warmth spread through her at the thought of him remembering that. And that he’d paid that much attention to her, _weeks_ ago?

Felicity winked. “Imagine what that means now.”

His nostrils flared, eyes darting to her lips and then back to her eyes. Electricity arched between them, heating the air. With a teasing grin, Felicity pushed up onto her toes and brushed her lips against his.

Artemis knew exactly where this was going and she bound back with an urgent bark.

“Sorry, sorry, sorry,” Felicity told her. She kissed Oliver’s jaw - because she could now, that was a thing she got to do, and she was so totally going to do it _all the time_ \- and then pushed him away before she got caught up in him again. She skipped forward to match Artie’s excited patter of paws on the floor. “Let’s get the heck downstairs, huh? You’re such a good girl for holding it in, yes you are.”

The instant they were downstairs and Felicity opened the French doors in the kitchen, Artemis ran off, relieving her bladder for what felt like an eternity. She was too excited to do the rest of her business, so Felicity let her back in, heaping more praise on her. All that training was paying off and to reward her, she dropped a little treat in her food. Her tail only stopped wagging when she was snarfing down her food, but even then every little noise had her looking up, as if waiting for Oliver to appear.

Felicity wasn’t the least bit ashamed to admit she was doing the same exact thing. She couldn’t wait to see him again, even though she’d seen him just mere moments ago. That excitement had always been there, but now it was more _vivid_. Because whatever was happening between them?

It was real.

Artemis licked her bowl clean just as Oliver walked into the kitchen.

Felicity spun from where she’d been leaning over the counter. When he walked straight to her, she sighed. And the way he looked at her? _Oh boy, I am in trouble._ When he reached her, he grasped her hips and tugged her against him, giving her a soft kiss.

“Mm, minty,” she whispered before making a face. “Now I’m paranoid about my breath.”

Oliver responded with a kiss that she felt all the way to her toes.

“Oh… okay, that…” Felicity fanned her face and then touched her lips. “I’m good now.”

“Good. So, cinnamon swirl pancakes. I’m pretty sure I have everything I need…”

“Oliver.” Felicity grabbed his hand before he could go. “Would you like to go to dinner with me?”

His eyebrows shot up. “Like a date?”

“Yes. A date. You know, a date-date. You know, where two people get dressed up. And eat food. Somewhere. On a date. I just figured we should, you know, make it official. Have a date on the calendar. A date. For our date-date. Wow, I’m really going for gold with these sentence fragments, aren’t I?”

“I love your sentence fragments,” he told her, curling his fingers inside hers.

“Good,” Felicity replied. “Because I can’t seem to stop, even though I’m trying. No, what I’m trying to do is ask you out and I realize how silly that probably is considering we just slept together. Not _slept_ together, but slept in the same bed. Why am I clarifying that?”

“Yes,” Oliver interrupted before tugging her into his arms. He pressed his forehead to hers. “I would love to go on a date with you.”

“Good. Okay then, it’s a date. We have a date.” Felicity grinned and when he returned it, that swoopy feeling was back in her stomach. She traced the edge of his lips. “I love seeing you smile so much.”

“You give me a lot of reasons to smile.”

“That makes me very happy.”

“ _You_ make me happy,” Oliver told her. They started swaying where they were wrapped up in each other. “There’s… I haven’t… It’s been a long time since…”

“I see my sentence fragments have rubbed off on you.”

Oliver paused, and then he huffed out a little laugh. He pulled her closer to his chest, splaying his hands over her back.

“What I’m trying to say is that… When I was on the island…”

Felicity held her breath. He had told her about his nightmares, bits and pieces, but he hadn’t really opened up to her. Not like this.

“I wasn’t there alone,” he continued, “and the entire time, no matter what I did, it was too… I could never trust anyone. And when that goes on for so long, you stop seeing people for… for people. You see threats. Sometimes… targets, even. And when I came home, I… I didn’t know how to turn that part of me off. Until I walked into your office for a consultation and you demanded I offer you a place here in exchange for the security upgrade.”

Felicity laughed. It came out a little uneven \- there was so much in what he’d just told her, she didn’t even know where to begin to wrap her mind around it - but she kept her voice light. “Sorry about that, I just really liked it here.”

“Please don’t apologize,” he whispered. “It brought you into my life. You were the first person I could see as a… as a person. There was just something about you.”

“I was chewing on a pen.”

“It was red.”

She grinned on a soft, “Yeah.”

“Felicity… You’ve opened up my heart in ways I didn’t even know were possible.”

The declaration stole her breath away. And that’s what it was, a declaration. It washed through her. No, it crashed through her. It changedher. It sent her flying as much as it grounded her. Showed her the beauty of the universe and anchored her to the best and most real thing she’d ever felt with another person. 

When Felicity pulled back to look into his eyes, the power in his words reflected back at her from the gorgeous blue.

She kissed him.

It was a promise, that she felt the same, that they were doing this, that there was so much more to look forward to, not just for her alone, or him alone. But for _them_.

They didn’t part - they didn’t _want_ to part - but then Oliver’s stomach growled, followed by hers.

“Food would be good,” she said.

“Yeah.”

“I’m going to walk Artemis.”

“Can I come with?” Oliver asked, smoothing hair off her temples. “Breakfast won’t take long, and then we can take the long way. Wear her out.”

“Oh, have something in mind for later, do you, Mr. Queen?”

“Perhaps.” He grinned and kissed her. “Especially later tonight. After dinner.” Artie barked and Oliver pulled back to look at the pupper. “Don’t worry, you’ll get something special for dinner, too.”

“You’re going to spoil her.”

“I figure I owe her one,” Oliver replied. “She did bring us together, after all.”

“She did, didn’t she? Our little matchmaker.”

Artemis barked again and ambled over to jump up on them as if to say, _‘You’re welcome.’_

The End 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I switched things up a bit between them compared to canon, I hope you enjoyed it!
> 
> Thank you for reading! Reviews literally feed the soul and muse.

**Author's Note:**

> [Original Tumblr Posts](https://dust2dust34.tumblr.com/tagged/fic%3A-puppy-au)
> 
> Thank you for reading!! The second part will be posted tomorrow!
> 
> Reviews literally feed the soul and muse.


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